Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to contact management in a computing device and more particularly to contact utilization in communications.
Description of the Related Art
The address book has remained part and parcel of mobile telephony since the inception of the cellular network. The address book of a mobile phone is a data store of contacts including names and telephone numbers of those known to the possessor of the mobile phone. Often referred to as a contact list, mobile phones traditionally provide both a general list of contacts and also a “speed dial” list of most frequently accessed contacts. More advanced smart phones additionally provide the capability to filter contacts in a contact list, for example in order of most frequently contacted or most recently contacted.
Oftentimes, different contacts in a list fulfill an interchangeable role such that when one contact of a role is to be reached telephonically, in the event that the contact of the role cannot be reached, reaching an alternative contact of the same role can be a satisfactory outcome. At present, the manner in which contacts of a role can be reached is best termed a brute force method. Specifically, one typically begins with an attempt to telephone a first contact of the role and continues through the list until a contact of the role is reached. To the extent that the first or second contact can be reached, the brute force method can suffice. However, where the first available and reachable contact of a role resides four or more entries deep in a contact list filtered by role, the manually intensive brute force method can be extraordinarily wasteful.
When selecting a contact for communication that enjoys an interchangeable role with other contacts, the context of the communication can be of importance. For example, when seeking to dial a restaurant to order food, the location of the mobile device ought to determine which restaurant to select for dialing. Likewise, when calling for medical attention, the hour of the phone call should determine whether or not to dial the regular phone number of a doctor, or perhaps an after-hours number. Knowing which phone number to select based upon the context is largely a manual exercise wholly dependent on the ad hoc thinking of the end user.